Article handling apparatus



P 8, 1931- w. R. BRADLEY 1,822,432

ARTICLE HANDLING APPARATUS Filed April 25, 1930 Z SheetS-Sheet 1 2 70 p; f/y.

Patented Sept.'8, 1931 TATES PATENT OFFICE WALTER R. BRADLEY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO WESTERN ELECTRIC COM- PANY, ENCORPORATED, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK ARTICLE HANDLIN G APPARATUS Application filed April 25,

This invention relates to article handling apparatus, and more particularly to' article lifting and conveying apparatus. a

The primary object of this invention is to I provide an improved apparatus for handling, l1 4g or conveying articles in a safe and facile manner.

In accordance with the general features of I this invention, in one en'ibodiment thereof as applied to an apparatus for simultaneously lifting and conveying a plurality of reels or spools there isprovided a common supporting frame having means for attachment to a an elevating and conveying tackle. Depending from and flexibly attached to the frame a e a plurality of, in the present instance four, .iilar spool gripping units, one for each of the spools to be lifted. Each unit includes H an ouiwand an inner shell with a plurality f paw s h ving se rated outer faces pivoted to the n rshell and movable through apertures n ovided in the outer shell for engagement with the surface of the bore of the spool, the pawls being normally urged outwardly into gripping engagement by a spring pressed (iOllttl' engaging the inner ends of the pawls. Also pivoted upon the inner shell is a pair of oppositely arranged latches which are operalile simultaneously by means of a rod havso in two effective positions and engageable with cum faces upon the latches.

The rod in one of the positions cooperates with the latches in such a manner that when the inner shell moved vertically to lift the i spool. a 3 the outer shell has beenentered in the bore of the spool and is resting upon the spool, the latches cannot engage the shoul- (lei-s in the outer shell and the ser 'ated pawls will con quently move outwardly and firmly surrounding the here of the su facilitated by the upward urge of the seed collar. After the spool is apossible to release the pawls therc from until the ap, aratus' is again restupon t spool. When moved to its u ine .lion the rod moves the latches to en ine shoulners in the outer shell so that upoi .ertical n'ioven'ient of the inner shell the serrated pawls are prevented from moving so to an outer operative position. A hand oper- 1930. Serial No. 447,348.

ated lever is operatively connected to each of the latch operating rods for simultaneously moving the rode into one or the other of their effective positions.

(lther objects and advantages of this invention will more fully appear from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is an elevation of a lifting and conveying apparatus which is representative of one embodiment of this invention, the apparatus being shown suspended without a load from an elevating and conveying mechanism, shown fragmentarily;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the left end of Fig. 1;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical irregular section, partly in elevation. on the line 33 of Fig. 1, showing the apparatus suspended without a load;

Figs. 4: and 5 are views similar to Fig. 3 showing the apparatus in position ready to lift a load and with a load suspended therefrom, respectively, and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged vertical section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein similar reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, a longitudinally extending supporting frame 10 (Fig. 1) has attached thereto intermediate its ends an eye 11 through whichextends a. hook 12 of a suitable elevating and conveyin tackle (not shown), whereby the appa-- ratus may be lowered, elevated or conveyed. as desired. In the embodiment of the apparatus illustrated the frame 10 has suspended from its under surface four similar equally spaced article gripping units 13 which will hereinafter be described in connection with of will be confined to the extreme left unit, as

thereat.

viewed in Fig. 1 and shown in detail in Figs. 8, i and 5.

The units 13 are each flexibly suspended individually from the frame 10 by a universal connection 1'? so that the spools A to be handled by the apparatus need not be exactly aligned with the units but only approximately so. Secured by screws 18 to the underside of the frame 10 is a yolre 19 having pivoted between depending arms thereof a collar 20, diametrically opposed shouldered screws 21 (Fig. being threaded into the arms and freely entered in apertures in the collar. The collar 20 is pivotally attached to a similar collar 22 by means of a pair of diametrically opposed links 25 arranged at .h o from each of the arms of the yoke 19. Shouldered screws 26 freely entered in apertures in the links 25 and threaded into the collars 20 and 22 serve as pivotal connections therebetween. At diau'letrically opposite points of the collar 22 and 90 from the links 25 the collar 22 is pivotally attached by means of screws 21, in a manner similar to the pivotal connection between the yoke 19 and the collar 20, to a yoke portion 2'. of a hollow member or shell 28. It will be obvious that when the plurality of units 13 are lowered to insert their lower ends into axial bores 29 of a row of spools l l and the spools are not aligned with the units as shown in the case of one spool in Fig. 3, that the units 13 may each individually move in a plurality of directions by means of the universal connections 17 and align themselves with the spool bores 29, one movement of the units 13 permitted by the universal connections 17 being illustrated in Fig. 1, wherein the unit has been lowered into the bore of the spool.

Surrounding; the shell 28 is an outer hollow member or shell 32 provided with an open upper end and an annular flange 33 The shell 32 is tapered from the flange 33 to a closed lower blunt end. From a point 84 along the inner peripheral surface of the outer shell 32 to the upper end thereof the shell is provided with a finished surface upon which the inner shell 28 is adapted to slide at certain periods in the operation of the apparatus. The inner shell 28 adjacent its lower end is formed with three recesses spaced 120 apart, one of which is shown in each of Figs. l and 5. and pivotally mounted therein is a pawl 39 having its outer end face serrated as indicated at ll).

Each of the pawls 39 at its outer cud extends through correspondingly aligned slot ll formed in the outer sl. l 32, while the inner ends of the pawls engage an upper surface of a flanged collar d2 mounted to slide upon a pin 43 threaded into the lower end of the inner shell The collar is normally urged upwardly by a compression spring 46 surrounding the collar and engaging at opposite ends the flange thereof and the lower inner surface of the outer shell 82. It will be obvious that the movement upwardly of the spring pressed collar will tend to rock the pawls 39 outwardly about their pivots. Also pivoted in dian'ietrically opposite slots ll" formed in the upper end of the inner shell 28 are latches l8, one of which is illustrated in Figs. 3, l and 5, each provided with a cam surface il-9 upon its inner edge. The upper ends of the latches 4-8 in one position thereof, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, are entered in recesses formed in the inner periphery of the outer shell 32 at its upper end and engaged with shouldered surfaces 50 of the shell 32, while the lower ends thereof are entered in the bore of the inner shell 28. In another po' sition of the latches 48, as shown in Fig. 5, they have been withdrawn from under the shoulders at?) and are entirely within the slots ll" of the ii r shell 28 with the upper end of the cau'i faces entered in the bore of. the inner shell These different positions of the latches 4-8 will be referred to hereinafter.

@lourualed i n brackets 53 fixed to vertical arms 54L iuteo'ral with the frame 10 is a shaft extending longitudinally of the frame at one side thereof. Fixed to the shaft 55 in line with each of the units 13 is a lever 56 having; secured to its free outer end a cap 57, the opposed surfaces of the lever and the cap he f formed to provide socket 60 for re cei ie" an upper ball end 61 of a plunger rod 62 The plunger rod extends downwardly throne-h aligned apertures formed in the frame 10 and the yolre 19. the bores of the collars 20 and 22. and into the bore of the inner shell 28. Upon its lower end the plunger rod 62 is formed with. a ball end ('34 similar to the upper ball end 61 thereof and which has a sliding! fit in a portion 67 of the bore of the inner shell 28. Pivot-ed as indicated at 68 upon a vertical wall 69 of the frame 10 and adiacent each end thereof is a hand lever '70 Fine. 1 and 2\ which is operativelv connected to the adiacent lever 56 at each end of the frame. Formed in each of the hand levers 70 is a slot 71 and opera t velv ensue-ed therein is a projecting head 4 of one of a pair of screws used to secure the can 57 to tl e lever 56. Tu rocking either of the hand levers 7O clockwise 1) about their pivots (38 it will be obvious that all of the levers 5G. hv means of the interconnecting shaft will be raised to the position shown in Figs. 3 and t and by means of the ball and socket connection between the leve s 5G and the Dll'lfiQ l' rods 62 the latter will also be raised. The hand levers 70 are each held in their raised position by a spriun pressed nlunsrer 75 1 and 6) mounted in a plus: 6 tl'iroadcd into the frame 10 directly below the pivot 68. the plunger being; limited in its upward movement by a plate 77 engaging a shoulder 78 on the plunger. Forniecl upon the upper end of the plunger 7 are angularly disposed cam faces 81 engageable in a notch 82 in a short arm 83 of the hand lever 70. In the full line position of the left hand lever 70 (F 1) after it has been rocked from the dotted outline position the plunger 7 5 is entered in the notch 82 and the upward thrust of the plunger being directly in line with the pivot 68 of the lever holds the latter and the levers 56 and the plunger rods 62 connected thereto in their upper positions. The companion hand lever 70 at the opposite end of the frame also follows and is latched in a similar manner.

In the operation of the apparatus in the lifting and conveyin simultaneously of a plurality of spools 14 of wire, the elevating and conveying tackle (not shown) is manipulated to position the depending aligned gripping units 13, numbering four in the present embodiment of this invention, and normally arranged parallel to each other by gravity, over a row of spools. This position of the apparatus is illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3. As hereinbefore described the spools to be handled need not be exactly aligned with the units 13 but only approximately so. In this position. of the apparatus the hand levers 70 will be in their raised latched position, hereinbefore described, with the latches 48 engaged in the shouldered surfaces of the outer shell 32, shown in detail in Fig. 3, and the lower ball end 64 of the plunger rod 62 opposite the upper end of the cam surfaces 49 of the latches 48, the lower end of the latter extending into the bore of the shell 28. Thus the weight of the outer shell 32 will be resting on the latches 48 with the lower surface of the yoke portion 27 of the inner shell 28 sli htly spaced from the upper surface of the flu so 33 of the outer shell 32 as indicated at (Fig. 3).

The elevating and conveying tackle is now lowered until the tapered blunt ends of the units 13 are inserted in the bores of the spools 1% and the weight of the apparatus rests upon the spools, as is clearly shown in Fig. l, with tie lower surfaces of the flanges 33 of the outer shells 32 hearing against the spool heads. At this instant the upper ends of the latches 48 are spaced from the shouldered surfaces 50 of the outer shell 32, due to the movement of the inner shell. 28, downwardly when the flange 33 of the outer shell 32 rests against the spool 14- and the lower surface of he yoke portion 2? of the inner shell ests against the upper surface of the flange 33, the space 8% being closed. It is du j this movement of the units 13 that the universal connections 17 between the frame 10 and the individual units function will be noted. by comparing the positions of the single unit 13 and the associated spool 14 in eaclrof Figs. 3

and l, during the lowering of the apparatus and at the completion of the lowering thereof, respectively. The rods 62 are then moved simultaneously downwardly, in a manner which will be clearly understood from the foregoing description, through the counterclockwise movement of either of the hand levers 70, the latter being unlatched and moved to the dotted outline position shown at l of F i 1, where they will be held the left end by gravity one their weigh and that of the operatively connected parts. shell 28 moves (lih iwardly relative to the outer shell 32 the spring 41-6 is compressed and the pawls 39 are rocked slightly counterclockwise about their pivots, during this movement of the inner shell, due to their being carried thereby and engaging the lower s1 faces of the slots ll. the inner ends of the pawls maintaining their contact with the collar 42. In the movement dmvnwardly of the the lower ball ends 64 thereof enpage the lower ends of the cam faces 49 of the latches 4-8 which are rocked clockwise to the dotted outline position shown in F l. This movement ofthe latches 48 withdraws the upper ends thereof from under the shouldered surfaces 50 of the outer shell 32 and ong as the rods 62 are in their lowered position the latches 1-3 are prevented from returnr q: under the shouldered surfaces 50.

T he eicvat o and conveying tackle is now operated to raise the apparatus, th units 13 of winch have been associatet with the spools 1. and as the inner sleeve 28 is raised from compre collar v the peripheral. surface the bore of the a'2-.ociated spool and simulaneouslv therewith th latches 48 are moved upwardly suficiently, as is clearly shown in Pi 5, to position the shoulder engaging ends of the latches 48 above the shouldered surfaces 50, thereby preventing the return of the latches under the shoulders as long as the spools l l are sr pended from the units 13, even thoi an attempt is made to operate the hand love Z0 to their latched position.

After the p ped spools 14 have been lirted and con to the desired position, the elevating and conveying tackle is lowered until the weight of the apparatus again rests upon .the spools as shown in Fig. l, thereby .ausi the spring l6 to be compressed and w1thdrawing the pawls 39 from ipoing engagement with the peripheral surface of the bore of the spools. Also the upper ends of the latches 48 are again substantially aligned vith the shouldered surfaces'SO as indicated by the dotted line position of the latch in Fig. 4. Thereafter either of the hand levers is rocked upwardly to As the inner serr-"ted outer end faces 40* its latched position, as shown in Fi 1, and consequently the lower ball ends 64 of the rods (32 ride up the cam surfaces 49 of the latches 4:8 and rock the latter counterclocle wise to position the upper ends thereof under the shouldered surf ces 50 ot the outer sleeve 32, as shown in lull lines in Fig. 4. The elevating and conveying tackle is then raised to withdraw the freed units 13 from association with the deposited spools 14-, the latter it will be apparent being arranged symmetrically in their new position, due to the universal connections 17.

It will be obvious from the foregoing description that the possibility 0t accidently releasing the spools l t from the units 13 when the spools are suspended from the apparatus is prevented by having the pivotal. latches 4t? of each unit, which are operated by the hall end 64 ot the rod 62, in a position where they cannot be moved under the shouldered surfaces 50 ot the outer shell Furthermore, it is only when the latches 48 are in position for association with the shouldered surfaces 50, which is possible only when the inner shell 28 is resting upon the outer shell 32 (Fig. 4:), at which time the spools ll are resting'upon a support, that the release of the pawls 39 from gripping engagement with the peri iheral surfaces of the bores of the spools can be effected.

lVhile this invention has been disclosed and described in connection with the bandling of a particular article, it will be understood that the invention is capable of ap plication to other types ot articles and is only limited by the scope oi the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. ln an article handling apparatus, a hollow member tor entering a bore of an article, an element movable in said member, pivotal means carried by said element operable to engage said mei'nber tor controlling the movement of the element with respect to the member, jaws carried by the element movable through. openings in the member for gripping the article within the bore thereof when the element is moved in a predetermined direction, and means for actuating said pivotal controlling means to permit said movement of the element.

2. In an article handling apparatus, a shell for entering a bore of an article, a core movable in said shell, a plurality of pivotal latches carried by said core operable to en gage shouldered surfaces on said shell tor controlling the movement of the core with respect to the shell, jaws carried by the core movable through openings in the shell for gripping the article within the bore thereof when the core is moved in a predetermined direction, and means for actuating said latchesto permit said movement of the core.

3. In an article handling apparatus, a shell for entering a bore of an article, a core movable in said shell, means operatively associated with said shell and core for controlling the movement of the core with respect to the shell, pivotal jaws carried by said core movable outwardly through openings in the shell for gripping the article within the bore thereof: when the core is moved in a predetermined direction, means mounted within the shell for normally urging said jaws out wardly, and means for actuating the coin trolling means to permit said movement of the element.

4. In an article handling apparatus, a shell for entering a bore oi an article, a hollow core movable longitudinally in said shell, a pair of diametrically opposed pivotal latches arried by said core operable to engage shouldered surfaces on said shell for controlling the movement of the core wi h respect to the shel said latches having cane surfaces extending into the hollow of the core, jaws carried by the core movable through openings in the shell tor gripping the article within the bore thereof when the core is moved longitlulinally in a predetermined direction, and means movable in the hollow of the core ongageable with the cam surfaces ot the latches tor actuating the same to permit said movement ot the core.

5. In an article handling apparatus, a shell. for Ill" a bore of an article, a hollow core movable in. said shell, means attached to said core for flexibly si )POl'tllig and movin the same, a plurality oi: iivo'tal latches carried by the core operable to engage shouldered sur faces on the shell for controlling the movement of the core with respect to the sh ell, said la'chcs having cam surfaces extending into the hollow oi the cores, aws carried by the core movable through openings in the shell for gripping the article within the bore thereot when the core is moved vertically in the shell. and a reciprocable plunger in the hollow of the core engageable with the cam surfaces ot the latches for actuating the same to permit the vertical movement of the core.

6. In a spool handling apparatus, tapered flanged shell for entering an axial bore of a spool with the flange resting thereon, hollow core movable in said shell, pivotal means carried by said core operable to enga said shell for controlling the n'iovemcnt ot the core vertically with respect to the shell, iaws carried by the core movable through openings in the shell for gripping the spool within the bore thereof when the core is moved vertically, a nd a plunger movable to either of two etliective positions in the hollow of the core engageable with the pivotal means, one of the positions of the plunger permitting vertical movement of the core only when the weight of the appa- 'atus is upon the spool, while the other position thcreoi' prevents a return movement of the shell when the shell has been moved vertically with the gripped spool.

7. In an article handling apparatus, a support for attachment to an elevating and conveying tackle, a plurality of article gripping units suspended therefrom, the units each including a hollow member for entering a bore of an article, an element movable in said member, pivotal means carried by said element operable to engage said member for controlling the movement of the element with respect to the member, jaws carried by the element movable through openings in the memher for gripping the article within the bore thereof when the element is moved vertically, and means for actuating the pivotal controlling means to permit the vertical movement of the elements.

8. In an article handling apparatus, a support for attachment to an elevating and conveying tackle, a plurality of article gripping units suspended therefrom in predetermined arrangement, an individual universal con nection between each of the units and the support, the units each including a hollow member for entering a bore of an article, an element movable in said member, pivotal means carried by said element operable to engage said member for controlling the movement of the element with respect to the member, aws carried by the element movable through openings in the member for gripping the article within the bore thereof when the element is moved Vertically, and means including a hand lever for simultaneously actuating the pivotal controlling means to each unit to permit the vertical movement of the elements.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe my name this 19th day of April, A. D. 1930.

WALTER R. BRADLEY. 

